CHAPTER 3: A SYSTEM OF INDEPENDENT MONITORING

In this chapter we will describe a system of monitoring in terms of actors, their role and their interaction.

3.1. The Actors

3.1.1. Monitoring Body

In 2.5 we have seen that the initiatives in both Europe and the United States where trade unions and ngo's are involved, propose a system with a Monitoring Body in which all parties are represented. In this report we will give an outline of how such a Body could be constructed and what its tasks could be.

The Monitoring Body will consist of representatives of companies (associations of retailers and suppliers), trade unions and ngo's. The Monitoring Body is the highest institution of the monitoring system. The purpose of the Monitoring Body shall be to:


• conduct, directly or indirectly through other organisations, the independent monitoring of compliance with the code
• assist companies in implementing the code
• provide a means to inform consumers about observance of the code and more generally about labour conditions in the industry

  To these ends the Monitoring Body shall:
  

• establish standards for the independent monitoring and for the accreditation of independent monitors
• train, or to arrange for the training, of independent monitors
• prepare an auditable checklist of labour practices to be used in monitoring the code
• prepare and publish guidelines for participating companies on the implementation of the code
• provide other technical assistance to companies in implementing the code
• prepare and publish the code in various languages as required by participating companies
• establish a means to interpret the provisions of the code, provided that this means is based on the recognised jurisprudence of the International Labour Organisation
• provide a means by which workers and any others can report on a confidential basis observance of the code establish, based on independent monitoring, a system certification concerning labour practices which can be used by consumers
• collect information from all sources on working conditions in the apparel and sportswear industry and to make this information available to consumers
• to promote the code of labour practice and to encourage all companies operating in the industry to adopt it to make effective recommendations with respect to any disputes arising out of the implementation or the certification process
• conduct or otherwise cause to be conducted independent monitoring of compliance by specific companies with the code of labour practice
• receive reports of such independent monitoring and to make effective recommendations based on these reports to the companies concerned
• investigate any substantiated reports concerning compliance by participating companies and to make effective recommendations based on the findings of such investigations

  The Monitoring Body is financed via contributions from its membership and payments from contracting companies. The Monitoring Body ensures that the process of independent monitoring is documented and transparent according to explicit standards. The Monitoring Body can use the expertise and technical assistance of the ILO. ILO jurisprudence is the basis for interpreting the meaning of international labour standards. Since all parties are directly represented in the highest decision making body of the system, they can discuss any problems they might encounter in doing their part and contribute to a solution.

3.1.2. Companies to be Monitored

These are retail companies or production companies (see 2.7.1) that have accepted a code of conduct as described in Chapter 1. The company agrees to implement the code and to incorporate the code into all of its operations and to make the code a integral part of its overall philosophy and general policy.

3.1.3. Intermediaries and Suppliers

These are all companies that the companies to be monitored subcontract their production to. These include buying houses, agents, traders, suppliers that do the actual production of garments and sportswear for the companies to be monitored and their subcontractors. Buying offices are excluded since according to our definitions of 2.7.1. a buying office is a subsidiary of the company to be monitored and therefore we consider it part of this company.

3.1.4. Monitors

These are the accredited professional bodies that, commissioned by the Monitoring Body, do part of the monitoring. A Monitor will need to have knowledge of the apparel business, this will be easier for quality control companies than for accountants. For example, when monitoring staff visits a factory, she/he must be able to see if the factory is on its time schedule for the order. If not, the factory is probably subcontracting part of the order. However, the monitoring staff will only notice such things if she/he is aware of how much time a factory needs to set up a production line. Monitors must of course also have accounting knowledge to be able to check the suppliers' wage records and workers' pay stubs. Monitors must be able to interview workers according to the criteria in 2.6.2. Monitors are not necessarily from Northern industrialised countries.

3.1.5. Local Organisations

As we have explained in 2.6., a general criterium that must be met in every step of monitoring is that workers' voices must be heard and listened to. Workers are represented in the Monitoring Body by the trade unions and ngo's. However, these are international operating organisations and may be quite difficult to reach for an average garment worker. To increase the feasibility of the system for workers, we need to add a link in the structure making it much closer to the local level and to workers. It has been suggested to identify 'Local Organisationss' in each country and/or region that produces garments and sportswear for a company to be monitored. These would consist of local trade unions and ngo's, or form an intermediary between the local organisations and the Monitoring Body. It still needs to be discussed internationally what structures need to be developed to facilitate a direct input by workers in the system, who needs to be involved, what pre-conditions must be met for such a structure to function and how this must be organized in the different countries. In this report we will refer to 'local organisations' as the general term for such a structure and describe what would be their function within the monitoring system in terms of when they should be consulted, what information they should receive etc.

The monitoring system consists of these 5 main actors and their interaction. In 3.9. the interaction between all actors in case of violations of the code is described. However, we will start with the starting procedures that come into action when a company makes clear it wants to accept a code of conduct as specified in Chapter 1 and it is willing to accept a system of independent monitoring.

3.2. Starting Procedures

In this paragraph we will describe the sequence of actions after a company approaches the Monitoring Body or is approached by the Monitoring Body to talk about a code of conduct and system of monitoring, and the company decides it wants to go ahead with it.

The first step is that the Company to be Monitored signs the code of conduct, and agrees to implement it and to accept a system of independent monitoring. In that phase the company does not receive a trademark and is not allowed to make any publicity regarding the code. First it must enter into the second step: the implementation of the code and the development of an internal system of monitoring.
The company must implement the code of conduct according to the implementation criteria specified in 2.2. This implementation will consist of the following steps:

a. The company communicates its new policy within the company. All employees of the company will be informed about the code of conduct and its meaning and about the system of monitoring. Those staff and divisions that will have any direct relation with the execution of the code will receive a more extensive training on what the code and the monitoring mean for their job, what the consequences of the implementation and the monitoring will be for them.
b. Responsibilities for the implementation of and compliance with the code will be clearly established within the company. The company will inform the Monitoring Body on where the responsibilities are located; which persons and divisions are responsible for what parts.
c. The company makes an overview of all its production locations, down the entire subcontracting chain.
d. The company communicates its new policy to all these production locations. This communication will have at least the following contents:


• The company translates the code of conduct to all the languages spoken in these production locations and sends it to them.
• The company has a meeting with the management of all production locations where it is explains what this code means, why it is accepted, what will be the consequences for the supplier, what the monitoring system is, what the benefit of this change will be for the supplier and what procedures will be followed. The Monitoring Body can assist the company in this stage.
  

e. The company checks if all these production locations have a personnel administration that includes names and addresses of all workers, their ages, the wages paid to them (regular and overtime) and the number of hours worked (regular and overtime). If the company finds production locations that do not meet this standards, the company will insist the supplier will immediately set up such a personnel administration and assist the supplier in this if necessary.
f. The company arranges that the translated texts of the code are being put up at all production locations and that the workers of all production locations are being provided with a copy of the text of the code in their language, including a local address where a complaint can be filed.
g. The company investigates which suppliers already meet the standards laid down in the code and which do not. This investigation will be carried out in a structured way, making use of standard questionnaires and will consist of visits to all production locations, interviews with management and with workers, according to the criteria specified for confidential interviews with workers. For those suppliers that do not meet the standards it will be specified on which issues they do not comply and the severity of the non-compliance. A grading system may be used in this phase. The company can be assisted by the Monitoring Body in this investigation.

In cooperation with the Monitoring Body and the monitor, the company will start to urge the suppliers that do not yet meet all the standards in the code to start complying. If necessary the company will assist the supplier in this. The company will then make the code an explicit part of any contract or business agreement it enters with an intermediary or supplier and the regular monitoring process can start.

The company signs a contract with the Monitoring Body, which specifies:

a) the time-frame in which the production in the different facilities should comply with all the standards in the Code.
b) the information the company has to give to the Monitoring Body.
c) the payments the company should make to the Monitoring Body.
d) the procedures for the implementation of the code and the internal monitoring by the company
e) the procedures for the external monitoring.
f) the use of this contract by the company in its public relations.

In this model the monitor would be hired by the Monitoring Body, not by the company to be monitored. This is a crucial difference. One can also think of a model where the Monitoring Body is only responsible for developing criteria and certifying monitors, after which the companies choose one of the monitors out of the pool of certified monitors. In such a system the company to be monitored would presumably sign a contract with the monitor. Often companies have a preference for such a model since they feel the confidentiality of their company data is better protected this way. They prefer giving sensitive data to one audit company only instead of giving it to an international body that also monitors other companies, perhaps even their main competitors. The companies might fear that there is not enough control over who has access to the information. However, there are several arguments against such an audit model, mainly having to do with the safe and direct involvement of workers. We will explain this first and then return to the question of confidentiality of company data.

There are four reasons why a model where the Monitoring Body hires the monitor is to be preferred over an audit model where the company to be monitored does so. First of all, it is hard to imagine a situation where workers will feel safe reporting complaints directly to either the company or to a certified commercial enterprise that is under contract by the company. By creating a direct channel for complaints to the Monitoring Body, (that includes ngo's and trade unions at the highest, decision-making level), this becomes more feasible.
Secondly, having a direct channel for ngo's and trade unions makes it possible to complain about the monitors and to have a check on them. It is difficult to envision all the possible grounds for disqualification (or qualification) in advance, since there is very little experience yet with such monitoring systems. In the end, a monitor will only be really qualified if all parties have confidence in its abilities and will be really disqualified if one or more parties loose confidence.
Thirdly, having a contract between the monitor and the Monitoring Body instead of between the monitor and the company to be monitored creates a system for what to do in case of non-compliance with the code. In the system where the monitor is hired by the company, the monitor would have to make decisions on what action the company should take. However, the monitor does not represent workers, the Monitoring Body does. Even when the monitor would be obliged to consult workers' organisations etc., to guarantee workers' influence in every step of the monitoring process it is better to have their direct influence on the highest decision making level.
Lastly, to avoid conflicts of interest it is to be preferred if the monitor receives no direct payments by the company it is monitoring. Even though the monitor might be completely trustworthy and independent and doing its job properly, if paid by the company the suggestion might be raised that the monitor is also speaking with the voice of the company, especially in countries where corruption is common practice and trust in independence is very low. Since confidence in the monitor and in the monitoring system is so crucial for its success, this should be avoided.

Returning to the question of confidentiality of company data, companies are usually afraid that their competitors will know who their suppliers are. This fear is perhaps a bit exaggerated, since such knowledge is not exactly top-secret. Suppliers are usually willing to tell who their buyers are, since they see that as advertisement, especially if they produce for big and famous retail stores or brands that have high quality demands. Especially in the sportswear industry that is dominated by a few big multinational brands, we find that these (Nike, Reebok, Adidas) often have their products produced in the same factories. In the garment industry there is some more diversion since there are much more different retailers, however, it is rare to find a supplier producing for one retailer only. Suppliers are already in a dependent position with the retailers and therefore prefer to have more than one customer.
However, even though a bit exaggerated, companies have of course a real interest that sensitive company data are not accessible to everybody. This interest can also be protected by a model with a Monitoring Body. In the contract between the company and the Monitoring Body it will not only be specified what information the company must give to the Monitoring Body, but also what the Monitoring Body is allowed to do with this information. Such a clause in the contract will give companies confidence that their right to confidentiality will not be violated. If this right would be violated it would be a contractual violation and the company can then make legal claims to whomever is to blame in this matter.

We will look into the contract between the Monitoring Body and the companies to be monitored in some more detail, following the 5 key issues specified above.

Concerning the time-frame in which the production in the different facilities should comply with all the standards in the Code, this has a lot to do with implementation. In 2.2. we have specified criteria for implementation. These steps must be taken by a company before the contract can be signed. The Monitoring Body can assist the companies with the implementation of the code, such as instructions to staff, translations of the code, clauses in contracts etc).
One of the reasons not to wait until the company complies with all the standards in the code for all its production locations is that the Monitoring Body should have some influence on how the company goes about this. The code is aimed at improvement. If a company uses production locations that are not fulfilling the standards, the first step should always be that the company tries to improve the conditions. If it is completely left to the company how they are going to comply, it might be an 'easier' road to simply shift production from the 'bad' locations to the 'good' ones. This will not lead to improvement for the workers with bad working conditions and might even deteriorate their situation because they might lose their jobs because of lack or orders.
After implementation and the signing of the contract, there should be a time frame in which all the production for the company to be monitored must meet the standards specified in the code.

Concerning the information the company has to give to the Monitoring Body, this will include information on:


• all their (contracts with) intermediaries and suppliers
• all action they undertake to implement the code
• all action they undertake in case of a violation of the code
  

There will be standards for how (detailed) this information has to be provided to ensure that the Monitoring Body receives comparable information from different companies. That also ensures that different companies that are monitored have the same obligations and therefore do not have competition advantages or disadvantages over each other that are related to being monitored.
In the contract it will also be specified what the Monitoring Body is allowed to do with this information. The information will be accessible to the monitor, since they need that to do their job. However, the monitor is under contract with the Monitoring Body and reports everything back to the Monitoring Body. The Monitoring Body will guarantee the confidentiality of this information, as long as the company follows the advice of the Monitoring Body. The company will be notified before any information is made public.

Concerning the payments the company should make to the Monitoring Body, these payments should be related to the size of the company. In that way also small companies can afford to be monitored. The payments the companies make to the Monitoring Body will not be the sole income of the Monitoring Body. It will also receive payments by the organisations that it consists of. Since the companies do not pay directly to the monitor, this decreases the possibility for conflicts of interest by the monitor and the suggestion of such conflicts.

Concerning the procedures for the implementation and internal monitoring by the company the following aspects can be identified:


• The company will assign responsibility for all matters pertaining to the Code within its organisation and inform the Monitoring Body and other relevant bodies where this responsibility is assigned.
• The company will maintain full and up-to-date information on all intermediaries and suppliers obliged to observed the code, including the nature and location of all workplaces, and to provide this information to the Monitoring Body or its agents in a timely manner upon request.
• The company and all its intermediaries and suppliers shall maintain records of the names, ages, hours worked and wages paid for each worker, and make these records available for inspection by the Monitoring Body and its agents, and to allow them to conduct confidential interviews with workers.
• The Board of Directors (or other governing Body) of the company shall periodically review the operation of the code, including the reports of internal and external monitoring.
• The company will make observance of the code a condition of all agreements that it enters into with intermediaries and suppliers. These agreements will obligate these intermediaries and suppliers to require observance of the code in all agreements that they make with subcontractors in fulfilling their agreement with the company.
• The company will provide or ensure the provision of translations of the code in the languages used at the production locations and provide authorised texts of the code to intermediaries and suppliers for their use.
• The company and all its intermediaries and suppliers will refrain from disciplining, dismissing or otherwise discriminating against any employee for providing information concerning the observance of the code.
  

Concerning external monitoring, see the next paragraph.
Concerning the use of this contract by the company in its public relations, the company will be allowed to profile itself as a company with an independently monitored code. The company will be granted the right to use a company trademark that it can use to inform their customers on the conditions under which the garments and sportswear they sell are being produced. This adds to the feasibility of the system for the consumer, who will in this way be able to distinguish between companies that are independently monitored and companies that are not.

The Monitoring Body hires the monitor to collect (part of) the information needed to check the company's performance. The Monitoring Body sets standards for training the monitors and for monitoring methods. The monitors receive information from the Monitoring Body and check on the implementation of the code and do ongoing checks on compliance with the code, according to the criteria in 2.6. Methods include at a minimum:

• check if the implementation plan of the company meets the implementation criteria (see 2.2).
• make unannounced spot checks at all production locations to check if the company undertook the actions in their implementation plan and to check if the suppliers meet the standards in the code.
• analyze the company information and cross-check with information from other parties.
• conduct confidential interviews with workers outside the workplace.
  In the contract between the Monitoring Body and the monitor it will be specified how often the monitors must report back to the Monitoring Body and what standards they have to use for the reports. It will also be specified how often each production location has to be visited and how many workers have to be interviewed. It will be the task of the Monitoring Body to make these specifications. The Monitoring Body will set the ground rules for monitoring and will constantly evaluate these rules.

The Monitoring Body will arrange for workers to report on the observance of the code in a way that is safe and direct, as specified in 2.6. This is done through interviews by the monitors, but also the workers can file a complaint with the Monitoring Body. Other persons and organisations also have the right to file complaints with the Monitoring Body. Because in most cases the Monitoring Body will be too far from the workers, thereby creating a too high threshold to file a complaint, the worker should be able to file the complaint via a Local Organisation.
To ensure that workers know about the right to file complaints and know what to do, at least the following steps must be taken:

• at each production location the text of the code is posted in the local language, including information to assist workers in reporting violations of the Code to the Monitoring Body or its agents taking into account the difficulties that workers will face in doing this and the need for confidentiality in order to protect workers.
• each worker of each production location receives the text of the code in the local language, including information to assist workers in reporting violations of the code to the Monitoring Body or its agents taking into account the difficulties that workers will face in doing this and the need for confidentiality in order to protect workers.
• the workers of each production location are orally informed about the code and its meaning, including explanation on how a complaint can be filed. The Monitoring Body must consult Local Organisations on how to do this.

Local Organisations will also play a role in the procedures in case of a violation of the code, see 3.9.

Abiding by the code must be an explicit part of each contract that a company to be monitored enters with any intermediary or supplier. Such a contract must include the following issues:


• Companies must ensure that their intermediaries and suppliers have records (company profiles) on all their subcontractors and that all suppliers have a personnel administration (records on all their employees, wages and working hours) to which the companies have access.
• All intermediaries and suppliers of the company must be informed on the code and what it means, their rights and obligations. The company must ensure that the intermediaries and suppliers inform all employees on the code and what it means, their rights and obligations.
• The company investigates all its suppliers to find out which meet the standards in the code and which do not (and on what aspects). This must be done in a structural way, using standardized questionnaires, and involving all production locations.
• The company must urge the suppliers that do not meet all standards to start complying with them, and assist the suppliers in this if necessary. Also, the company should enable their intermediaries and suppliers financially to abide by the code, or at least not disable them to do so. If the company pays such bad prices to a supplier that it is constantly on the verge of bankruptcy, the company cannot expect the supplier to pay decent wages and to invest in the factory.
• The company will ensure all contracts with intermediaries and suppliers allow for the termination of the contract when the intermediary, supplier or any of their subcontractors violate the code.

If the company itself finds a violation of the code at one of its suppliers, the company may authorise a procedure with fixed time limits to rectify situations. The agreement by the intermediary or supplier to abide by this procedure would enable the continuation of the agreement with the company. The company may also authorise intermediaries or suppliers to institute similar procedures with respect to their subcontractors. Such procedures shall be authorised only when the following four conditions are met:

a) there is a reasonable expectation that the situation will be corrected and that the code will be observed in the future.
b) the period specified for correcting the situation is reasonable.
c) recognisable and unmistakable violations of the code are ceased immediately.
d) the procedures are put forward to the Monitoring Body for approval.

With respect to child labour, such procedures shall require that there be no further engagement of children and that child workers should be replaced by adults, where possible from the same family.
Procedures should also include measures to assist the children concerned through provision of educational opportunities and transitional economic support.

Intermediaries and suppliers must, as part of their agreement with the company, agree to terminate any contract or agreement with any subcontractor not fully observing the code, or they must seek and receive approval from the company to institute a procedure with fixed time limits to rectify situations where the code is not being fully observed.
Where there is repeated failure to observe or to ensure observance of the code by a particular intermediary or supplier, the agreement should be terminated. Repeated failure shall be defined as three occasions or the same or similar violation, or when the Monitoring Body decides so. In situations where it is not clear whether a particular practice constitutes a violation of the code, relevant international labour standards of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the expert advice available from the Monitoring Body shall be sought for guidance. When such situations are determined to exist, the company agrees to inform and consult the Monitoring Body.

Their relation is a complex one. On the one hand the Local Organisations should have a task in assisting the monitors, especially in the aspect of how to ensure workers' participation in the whole monitoring structure. Local Organisations must be consulted on issues like: how to do interviews with workers, how to inform the workers on the existence of the code and its meaning and in general how to gain the confidence of the workers. This could be done either by the Monitor or by the Monitoring Body, who will then instruct the Monitor using this information. We have seen in 2.6.2. that this is necessary for the quality of the monitoring. On the other hand Local Organisations should have a general watchdog task, including checking on the monitors. If they find the monitor is not doing its job properly, they can file a complaint with the Monitoring Body. The Monitoring Body will then have this complaint investigated, of course by another monitor than the one the complaint is about. This other monitor will talk to all parties involved and report back to the Monitoring Body. The Monitoring Body will then decide what action must be undertaken. If it was found that the monitor was not working according to the standards and specifications set by the Monitoring Body, the Monitoring Body can reprimand the monitor. If the monitors' faults are severe or repeatedly, the Monitoring Body can terminate the contract with the monitor.

3.8.1. Interaction Companies to be Monitored and Monitors

Most of the interaction between the companies to be monitored and the monitors goes through the Monitoring Body. The companies give information to the Monitoring Body, who passes the relevant parts on to the monitor. For practical reasons the Monitoring Body can ask the companies to give information directly to the monitor, however, the obligation to do so is between the companies and the Monitoring Body. This is also valid the other way around: the monitor will report its findings to the Monitoring Body, who will then inform the companies. The Monitoring Body can ask the monitor to inform the companies directly on some issues, however, the obligation is between the monitor and the Monitoring Body.

3.8.2. Interaction between Intermediaries & Suppliers and Monitors

Again most of this interaction is indirect. The intermediaries and suppliers must allow the monitors to visit their production locations, to check their records and to interview their workers, however, all these obligations are obligations from the supplier to the company to be monitored. However, the supplier and the monitor are in direct contact and their communication is therefore important. The monitor should play a role in making the supplier understand what is expected and why. If the supplier has difficulties in living up to the standards, it might be easier for the supplier to discuss this with the monitor than with the company to be monitored, since theirs is also a business relation.

3.8.3. Interaction Companies to be Monitored and Local Organisations

There will probably not be any direct contact between these two. Their interaction will occur through the Monitoring Body.

3.8.4. Interaction Intermediaries and Suppliers and Local Organisations

There might be some direct contact between these two, even though the obligations will be between other parties. If the Local Organisationss play a direct part in informing the workers, the suppliers will be obliged to allow them to do so. This obligation is an obligation from the supplier to the company that it produces for.

3.8.5. Interaction Monitoring Body and Intermediaries and Suppliers

They do not have any contractual obligation to one another, this is arranged through the companies to be monitored. Direct contact between them will be rare since this will be the task of the monitor.

They are dealt with separately because they involve all actors.

There are 3 ways how a violations can become known, with different procedures.


1. the company itself finds a violation: see 3.6.
2. the monitor finds a violation.
3. a complaint is filed either directly at the Monitoring Body or through one of the Local Organisations.

If a monitor finds a violation or a complaint is filed, the Monitoring Body will play a crucial role. In general, the Monitoring Body establishes and carries out procedures in case of violations of the code, though it will ask others to collect the information. As we have seen in 2.6.3. these procedures must involve at least:


• getting the facts straight
• attempts to improve the situation
• investigation in the quality and the results of the attempts
• decision if the supplier can stay on as supplier
• decision if the action undertaken by the company to attempt to improve the situation was sufficient

If a complaint is filed, the Monitoring Body will ask the monitor to investigate the complaint. All parties must be heard: the person or organisation that filed the complaint, the supplier, the workers of that supplier, the relevant Local Organisations and others if necessary. The monitor will report to the Monitoring Body what it found. If the monitor was the one who found the violation, it will also report this information to the Monitoring Body.

The Monitoring Body will discuss the findings of the monitor and decide:


• if improvement is necessary, in other words is there a violation of the code
• if so, what this improvement should consist of, in other words what is the required situation at the end of the whole procedure
• what is the way to get to this situation and what is the required action by the different actors.

The Monitoring Body will now inform the different actors what action is required on their part. The actors will report back if they undertook this action and what has been the result. Since the supplier only has a contractual relation with the company to be monitored, it will be this company that should play the major part.
At the same time the Monitoring Body will ask the monitor and the Local Organisations for their input. The company has to take certain steps which must lead to certain results. The monitor must check if the company undertook these steps, and to some extent if that lead to the required results. However, also the Local Organisations should be asked for their opinion on the results. For this part of the procedure there will be a time frame, to avoid stalling practices and the case dragging on for months, as we have seen the necessity for that in 2.7.2.1.

Now the Monitoring Body has gathered all the information on the action by the company and the results to which that lead. The Monitoring Body must now take two decisions:


• if the action undertaken by the company has been sufficient, in other words did the company follow the advice by the Monitoring Body? In other words did the company violate its obligations to the Monitoring Body or not? And if it did, what should be the consequences? The consequences will depend on the severity of the violation and whether this has happened before or not. If the company violated its obligations in any case the Monitoring Body will reprimand the company and make the case public. In the worst case the Monitoring Body will terminate the contract with the company.
• did the action undertaken by the company lead to the required results? In other words did the supplier get back on track or is it continuing to violate its obligations to the company? If so, what should be the consequences of that? Are there any further steps that can be taken to get the supplier back on track and to improve the situation for the workers? Or is the situation so bad and/or the supplier so unwilling to cooperate that the only solution is for the company to terminate the contract with the supplier? Since this is certainly not going to lead to any improvement for the workers this is a desperate step that must only be taken if all else has failed. If this step is taken, it is not the end of the responsibility of the company. For example: some workers have been fired by supplier 1 for organizing a union. Supplier 1 refuses to accept the union and also refuses to rehire the fired workers. All attempts to mediate have failed and the company terminated the contract with supplier 1. Now if the company also buys from supplier 2 which is located near supplier 1, the company could ask supplier 2 if it has any job vacancies and if so, if it is willing to hire the fired workers of supplier 1. The Monitoring Body will make recommendations to the company on what action to take to improve the situation for the workers after terminating the contract with a supplier, if there are any possibilities to do so.

In this chapter we have described a system for monitoring a code of conduct in the garments and sportswear industry in terms of actors, their roles and their interaction. This is not meant to be the final, one and only system of such monitoring. If this system is established it will need to be constantly evaluated and improved. We welcome everybody's ideas and comments at all times.

TOOLKIT

This list is to be used for on the spot checks. It is NOT a questionnaire, it is to be used by the person who does the check. It only deals with question that can be answered by looking around. For a report on the situation in a factory it will always be used in combination with interviews with management and workers.

This part deals with question that are not directly related with one of the demands in the FTC. Some of these questions are qualitative rather than quantitative. They can only be answered within the assumption that the person who does the check visits more than one factory and is able to compare them.

1.1 GENERAL IMPRESSION
Is the factory spacious/regular/crowded?
Is there proper space for walking between the different workplaces? Yes/No
Is the factory tidy? Yes/No
Is the factory clean? Yes/No

1.2 ATMOSPHERE
Is the atmosphere in the factory tense/regular/relaxed?
Does there appear to be high work pressure? Yes/No
Do workers seem to be afraid to look up from their work? Yes/No
Is it possible to make eye contact with workers? Yes/No
Do you see supervisors yell at workers? Yes/No

1.3 CANTEEN
Is there a canteen? Yes/No
Is the canteen big enough that all the workers can eat there? Yes/No
How many workers can be seated in the canteen? ...
Is the canteen clean? Yes/No

1.4 TOILETS
How many toilets are there in the factory? ...
Separate toilets for men and women? Yes/No
How many for men and how many for women? ... for men, ... for women
How does this relate to the number of male and female workers?
...% of workers is male, ...% is female
Are all toilets functioning? Yes/No. ... are not functioning.
Are the toilets clean? Yes/No

2.1 MEDICAL FACILITIES
Is there any sort of medical facility? Yes/No
What does it consist of?
first aid kit - what is in it?
beds - how many?
other medical equipment?
nurse - permanent or visiting (how often)?
doctor - permanent or visiting (how often)?

2.2 SAFETY EQUIPMENT
Do all sewing machines have needle guards? Yes/No. If not, how many lack needle guards? ...
How many cutters wear protective steel gloves? ...

2.3 ERGONOMY
How many workers are standing? ...
How many workers are sitting on stools? .
.. How many workers are sitting on chairs with a back? ...
Of how many chairs can the height be adjusted? ...

2.4 LIGHT
Does daylight enter the factory? Yes/No
What sort of artificial light is used in the factory?
Is there enough light in the factory? Yes/No

"In order to achieve a sufficient degree of uniformity of light in the working place, the distance between the lines of light should not exceed 1.5 times their height above the working place. With broken lines, the longitudinal distance between neighbouring luminaires should not be greater than two thirds the height" (ILO 1989: 112).

2.5 AIR
What sort of temperature regulation does the factory have? Airco? Fans?
Is this sufficient? Yes/No
What is the temperature in the factory? (MEASURE!) ...
Is their any system of air circulation to filter the dust out of the air? Yes/No. If so, what does it consist of?
Is it dusty in the factory? Yes/No
Are their any signs of fluff visible in hair/on clothes of workers? Yes/No
How many workers wear dust caps for mouth & nose? ...

2.6 FIRE FIGHTING
How many exits does the factory have? ...
Is there an emergency staircase? (if -part of- the factory is not
at ground level) Yes/No
Are the emergency exits/staircase clearly indicated? Yes/No
Is there an emergency light system? Yes/No
Are the emergency exits/staircases accessible? Yes/No
Are the emergency exits/staircases unlocked? Yes/No
Are there fire extinguishers? Yes/No How many? ...
How old are the fire extinguishers? What is the latest date that they have been checked? ...
Are there fire blankets? Yes/No How many? ...

2.7 WATER
Are the workers provided with clean drinking water? Yes/No

Are their any workers who appear to be under 14? Yes/No
What are their jobs?

This questionnaire will be adjusted for different countries, depending on the local situation. This is indicated in the questionnaire with [].

1. LIVING WAGE
[There are many ways of calculating and measuring wages. They can be taken with or without overtime, bonuses and other extras. What we are interested in is whether the wage covers basic needs, so we want to know the amount of money that is available to the worker, including all extras. The person conducting the interview will know what is the legal minimum wage and what is the amount of money that covers basic needs in this country].

Are you on piece rate or on hourly/daily/monthly wage?
If there is a piece rate, can a typical worker on average speed earn the minimum wage?
What is your job in the factory? (machine operator, helper, supervisor, cutter)
What is your basic wage? What is the basic wage of a machine operator?
Are there any additional bonuses or incentives? Like attendance bonus, productivity bonus, incentive for reaching the target etc?
Are you paid extra for overtime? How much does overtime pay?
How much money did you take home altogether last month/week?
Is your wage sufficient to live on? If not, how much more would you need? Do you have other sources of income? How do you manage?
Compared with other factories that you know of, does this factory pay good/regular/bad wages?
Is the factory ever late in paying the wages and overtime payments? If so, how often does that happen?
Do you always receive payment for all the hours you have worked?
Do you have any complaints concerning your wages?

2. WORKING HOURS
How many hours do you work on an average working day? At what time do you start in the morning and at what time do you leave?
Is there a lot of overtime?
Is it possible to refuse to work overtime?
How many overtime hours did you work last month?
How many days per week do you work? Do you have to work 7 days per week sometimes? If so, how often did that happen in the last two months?
Do you get paid holiday? How many days? Is it difficult to take these days? Can you always take all your holidays?
Do you have any complaints concerning your working hours?

3. THE RIGHT TO ORGANIZE AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
Is there a union in the factory?

if so:
What is the attitude of the management towards the union?
How many people are member of the union? Are you a member?
Do you have a CBA? If so, how often is it negotiated?
What are the main demands of the union?

if not:
Is there any other form of workers' organisation? What does it consist of? Is it a democratic organisation? Do you get to vote about who represents you?
Do you know of an attempt to set up a union in the factory? Why did it fail?
Would you like to have a union in the factory? Why (not)?

4. NO DISCRIMINATION
[Discrimination on grounds of sex, skin colour, ethnicity, sexual preference, religion, political beliefs or other. The following questions are for discrimination on grounds of sex. Depending on the local situation, questions will also be asked on the other themes].

Is there a difference in wages for men and women? If so, what is the difference?
Are the supervisors men or women? How many are men and how many are women?
Is it difficult to make promotion? Is it more difficult for men or for women? Why?
Are men and women treated the same by supervisors/management? If not, what are the differences?
Do supervisors make sexual advances on workers?
Has a supervisor ever requested sexual favours from you or someone you know in exchange for more pay or something else?

5. CHILD LABOUR
Are there people under 15 working at the factory?
If so, how many?
How old are they?
What are their jobs?
Do they work as many hours as the adult workers?

6. HEALTH AND SAFETY
Are their any medical facilities at the factory? If so, what do they consist of?
first aid kit - what is in it?
beds - how many?
other medical equipment?
nurse - permanent or visiting (how often)?
doctor - permanent or visiting (how often)?
If you feel ill, are you allowed to take a rest?
Do you have access to the medical facilities?
Can you go to the doctor?
Do you have to pay for this?
Do you have a medical insurance?
Who pays for the medical insurance?
Do you get paid sick leave? Up to how many days?
Do you get paid maternity leave? How many days?
Is this paid for by the company or by the state?

Is there enough light in the factory?
Is the temperature regulation in the factory sufficient? Is it hot in the factory?
Is it dusty in the factory?
Do you get to wear dust caps for mouth & nose?
Are the workers provided with clean drinking water?

Do you have any health problems that are related to your work? What are they?
Do you know of other workers in your factory who have health problems that are related to their work? What problems do they have?
Does the company do anything about these health problems?
Have any improvements been made in the health and safety situation in the factory?

Do you know of any accidents that happened in your factory?
What did they consist of?
What happened to the workers who were involved in this accident?
Have you noticed if there is fire fighting equipment in the factory?
If so, what does it consist of?
Do you know if there is an emergency exit? Is it accessible at all times?
Do you ever get fire drills?

Do you have any complaints about the health and safety situation in the factory?

GENERAL
Would you consider your factory a good, a bad or a regular factory to work for, compared with other factories that you know of? Why?
What would you consider the most important improvements that you would like in your working situation?
Do you have any complaints or remarks about your working situation that we have not discussed yet?

THE CODE OF CONDUCT
Do you know what a code of conduct is?
Do you know there is one for your factory?
Have you ever seen the text of the code of conduct?
Did the management inform you about the code of conduct?
Do you know you have certain rights because of this code of conduct?
Do you know what these rights are?
Do you know you can file a complaint if your rights are violated?
Would you know how to do that?
Would you consider filing a complaint if your rights are violated?

0. GENERAL
When did you hear about company X's code of conduct?
Was it clear to you what this meant?
Was it possible for you to meet the standards in the code of conduct?
What measures did you take to implement the code of conduct?
Did you communicate this to the workers? If so, in what way?
Was it necessary to make any improvements in the working situation? If so, which ones?
Did company X assist you in this matter?
Was this assistance sufficient?
Do you currently encounter problems in implementing the code of conduct?
Can you solve these problems or would you need more assistance in this than you currently get?
Do you see this development with the code of conduct as an improvement? Why (not)?

1. WAGES
Is there a piece rate system or hourly/daily/monthly wages?
If there is a piece rate, how high is it? Examples.
What is the basic wage of a machine operator?
How much do you pay for overtime?
Are there any additional bonuses or incentives? Like attendance bonus, productivity bonus, incentive for reaching the target etc? What do they consist of?
Are there any additional benefits? Like insurance, savings programs, etc? What do they consist of?

2. WORKING HOURS
How many hours is the factory producing on an average day? Do you work in shifts?
How many hours was the factory producing last week? Was that an average week?
How many days per week does the factory produce? Do you produce up to seven days per week sometimes? If so, how often did that happen during the last two months?
How many paid days off do the workers get?
Do workers have the choice if they want to do overtime?
Do you have any policy on a maximum number of working hours for workers?

3. THE RIGHT TO ORGANIZE AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
Is there a union in the factory?

if so:
What is the relation with the union? Do you see their role as a constructive one?
Is there a CBA? If so, how often is it negotiated?
Have you had any problems with the union? What did they consist of?

if not:
Is there any other form of workers' organisation? What does it consist of? Is it organized by the workers or by the management?
Would you object to have a union in the factory? Why (not)?

4. NO DISCRIMINATION
[Discrimination on grounds of sex, skin colour, ethnicity, sexual preference, religion, political beliefs or other. The following questions are for discrimination on grounds of sex. Depending on the local situation, questions will also be asked on the other themes].

Is there a difference in wages for men and women? If so, what is the difference?
Do you have any policy on equal opportunities?

5. CHILD LABOUR
Are there people under 15 working at the factory?
If so, how many?
How old are they?
What are their jobs?
Do they work as many hours as the adult workers?

6. HEALTH AND SAFETY
Are their any medical facilities at the factory? If so, what do they consist of?
first aid kit - what is in it?
beds - how many?
other medical equipment?
nurse - permanent or visiting (how often)?
doctor - permanent or visiting (how often)?
Who pays for medical expenses of the workers? Is there a medical insurance? Who pays for the medical insurance?
Do you give paid sick leave? Up to how many days?
Do you give paid maternity leave? How many days?
Is this paid for by the company or by the state?
Do you provide the workers with dust caps for mouth & nose?
Do you provide the cutters with protective steel gloves?
Are the workers provided with clean drinking water?

Do you notice workers having health problems related to their work?
Does the company do anything about these health problems?
Have any improvements been made in the health and safety situation in the factory?

Did any accidents occur in your factory?
What did they consist of?
What happened to the workers who were involved in this accident?
Is there fire fighting equipment in the factory? If so, what does it consist of?
Is there an emergency exit?
Is it accessible at all times?
Do you ever do fire drills?

LIST OF LITERATURE

AMRC
1996 - Report on the Conditions of Workers in the Shoe industry of China. Hong Kong: AMRC

Anti Slavery International
1996 - How Company Codes of Conduct, 'Child Labour Free' Labels and the Social Clause Can Help Eliminate Child Labour. London: Anti Slavery International.

Apparel Industry Partnership
1997 - Report of the Apparel Industry Partnership. Internet: http://gatekeeper.dol.gov/dol/esa/public/nosweat/partnership/report.htm Bernard, E.
1997 - Ensuring Monitoring is not Coopted. Presentation at an independent monitoring forum, New York.

CAW
1995 - Silk and Steel. Asian Women Workers Confront Challenges of Industrial Restructuring. Hong Kong: CAW.

Clean Clothes Campaign
1997 - Of Rags and Riches. Amsterdam: Clean Clothes Campaign.
1995-1997 - Clean Clothes. International newsletter from the Clean Clothes Campaign, issues 5, 6 and 7. Amsterdam: Clean Clothes Campaign.

FENECON/STOGO
1994 - Patronen voor Morgen. Een Perspectief voor Nederlandse Confectie- en Tricotage Ondernemingen. Utrecht/Amsterdam:

Hong Kong Christian Industrial Committee
1997 - Change. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Christian Industrial Committee

ILO
1989 - Labour Inspection Skills in the Textile Industry. Bangkok: ILO

International Textile Garment and Leather Workers Federation
1996 - Newsletter, 4 issues. Brussels: ITGLWF.

Murphy, C.N.
1994 - International Organization and Industrial Change. Global Governance since 1850. Cambridge: Polity Press.

National Labor Committee
1992 - Paying to Lose Our Jobs. New York: National Labor Committee.

New Economics Foundation
1996 - Infopack. leaflets and briefings. London: NEF.

NEF/CIIR
1997 - Open Trading. Options for effective monitoring of corporate codes of conduct. London: NEF/CIIR for the Monitoring and Verification Working Group.

Roinick, A.L.
1997 - Muzzling the Offshore Watchdogs. In: Bobbin, February 1997

Schone Kleren Campagne
1997 - Lopen we Straks Allemaal Zonder Kleren Rond? Lastige vragen omtrent Schone Kleren. Brussel: Schone Kleren Campagne.

Schone Kleren Kampagne
1996 - Kleding in Bedrijf. De Wandel van de Handel. Amsterdam: Schone Kleren Kampagne.
1995 - Kleding in Beweging. Het Werk achter het Merk. Amsterdam: Schone Kleren Kampagne.

Sklair, L.
1993 - Assembling for Development. San Diego: Center for US-Mexican Studies, University of California.

SOMO
1997 - Between Retailer and Producer. Interviews with Hong Kong based companies active in the garment trade. Unpublished. Amsterdam: SOMO

. UNITE
1996 - Misery by Design. The Sweatshop Behind the Private Labels of Federated Department Stores. New York: UNITE.

US Department of Labor
1996 - The Apparel Industry and Codes of Conduct: A Solution to the International Child Labor Problem? Washington DC: US Department of Labor.

Vietnam Labor Watch
1997 - Nike Labor Practices in Vietnam. New York: Vietnam Labor Watch.

Weiss, L.
1997 - Sweatshop Task Force Report Fuels Controversy. In: Working Together, May/June 1997, Minneapolis: Resource Center of the Americas.

Zeldenrust, I. & J. van Eijk
1992 - Clean Clothes. Strategies for the Improvement of the Labour Situation from a Consumer Perspective. Amsterdam: SOMO.